Due to the challenging nature of their work, counselors are highly susceptible to burnout. Given the high prevalence of burnout in the profession, it is important to identify and better understand potential safeguards against it. Counselor self-efficacy is one factor that has been found to function as a safeguard; however, there has been little research that examines personality factors that may influence counselor self-efficacy and serve as buffers against burnout. Prior to this study, the constructs of mindset and grit, which have been found in the broader fields of educational and social psychology to promote self-efficacy and performance, have not been examined in the counseling field. This study proposed and investigated a theory-based process model that describes the roles that grit and mindset play in reducing burnout and increasing counselor self-efficacy. Participants were self-identified counselors who completed an online survey composed of demographic questions and established measures of each of the constructs under investigation. Results indicated that there is a moderate-to-strong negative relationship between counselor self-efficacy and burnout and that mindset and grit both have a small-to-moderate positive relationship with counselor self-efficacy. Practical implications and future directions for research are presented.
","abstract_html":"<p>Due to the challenging nature of their work, counselors are highly susceptible to burnout. Given the high prevalence of burnout in the profession, it is important to identify and better understand potential safeguards against it. Counselor self-efficacy is one factor that has been found to function as a safeguard; however, there has been little research that examines personality factors that may influence counselor self-efficacy and serve as buffers against burnout. Prior to this study, the constructs of mindset and grit, which have been found in the broader fields of educational and social psychology to promote self-efficacy and performance, have not been examined in the counseling field. This study proposed and investigated a theory-based process model that describes the roles that grit and mindset play in reducing burnout and increasing counselor self-efficacy. Participants were self-identified counselors who completed an online survey composed of demographic questions and established measures of each of the constructs under investigation. Results indicated that there is a moderate-to-strong negative relationship between counselor self-efficacy and burnout and that mindset and grit both have a small-to-moderate positive relationship with counselor self-efficacy. Practical implications and future directions for research are presented.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Novotny, Bethany"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"PhD","degree_level":"Worldwide Access","degree_discipline":"Counselor Education and Supervision (ExCES)","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Matthew Bundick","Louis Jocelyn Gregoire","John Massella"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2016,"date_issued":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2016-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:09:07Z","subjects":["burnout","counseling","counselor","grit","mindset","self-efficacy"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/102","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Matthew Bundick","Louis Jocelyn Gregoire","John Massella"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Novotny, Bethany"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2017-01-10T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Counselor Education and Supervision (ExCES)"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Worldwide Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["PhD"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["burnout","counseling","counselor","grit","mindset","self-efficacy"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/102"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Due to the challenging nature of their work, counselors are highly susceptible to burnout. Given the high prevalence of burnout in the profession, it is important to identify and better understand potential safeguards against it. Counselor self-efficacy is one factor that has been found to function as a safeguard; however, there has been little research that examines personality factors that may influence counselor self-efficacy and serve as buffers against burnout. Prior to this study, the constructs of mindset and grit, which have been found in the broader fields of educational and social psychology to promote self-efficacy and performance, have not been examined in the counseling field. This study proposed and investigated a theory-based process model that describes the roles that grit and mindset play in reducing burnout and increasing counselor self-efficacy. Participants were self-identified counselors who completed an online survey composed of demographic questions and established measures of each of the constructs under investigation. Results indicated that there is a moderate-to-strong negative relationship between counselor self-efficacy and burnout and that mindset and grit both have a small-to-moderate positive relationship with counselor self-efficacy. Practical implications and future directions for research are presented.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Beyond skill: The role of mindset and grit in reducing counselor burnout"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Matthew Bundick","Louis Jocelyn Gregoire","John Massella"],"dc:creator":["Novotny, Bethany"],"dc:date.available":["2017-01-10T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Due to the challenging nature of their work, counselors are highly susceptible to burnout. Given the high prevalence of burnout in the profession, it is important to identify and better understand potential safeguards against it. Counselor self-efficacy is one factor that has been found to function as a safeguard; however, there has been little research that examines personality factors that may influence counselor self-efficacy and serve as buffers against burnout. Prior to this study, the constructs of mindset and grit, which have been found in the broader fields of educational and social psychology to promote self-efficacy and performance, have not been examined in the counseling field. This study proposed and investigated a theory-based process model that describes the roles that grit and mindset play in reducing burnout and increasing counselor self-efficacy. Participants were self-identified counselors who completed an online survey composed of demographic questions and established measures of each of the constructs under investigation. Results indicated that there is a moderate-to-strong negative relationship between counselor self-efficacy and burnout and that mindset and grit both have a small-to-moderate positive relationship with counselor self-efficacy. Practical implications and future directions for research are presented.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/102"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:subject":["burnout","counseling","counselor","grit","mindset","self-efficacy"],"dc:title":["Beyond skill: The role of mindset and grit in reducing counselor burnout"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Counselor Education and Supervision (ExCES)"],"thesis:degree_level":["Worldwide Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["PhD"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:09:07Z"}